Social Justice Report 2006: Freedom Day
Social Justice Report 2006
Freedom Day
(from back cover of the report)
Freedom Day is the name given to the annual commemoration
of the Wave Hill Walk Off. The 40th anniversary of the Walk-off
was held in late August 2006.
The festival was a celebration and commemoration for Gurindji, stockmen, families and other people associated with the history of the Wave Hill Walk Off and subsequent events.
The festival also raised awareness in the broader Australian community of the significance of the Wave Hill Walk Off and subsequent events for all Australia.
Spread over two days the Festival began with a 20 minute “walk-off’
to the location on the Victoria River where the Gurrindji finished their walk from Wave Hill Station 40 years before. Down on the bank of the river many people spoke and remembered the Wave-hill
walk off and its significance to themselves and the nation. Community leaders, politicians, retired politicians and Indigenous leaders had an opportunity to address the crowd.
After a beef barbeque under the shade of the paperbark trees the crowd gathered again for a few more speeches and some entertainment. Local school children, supported
by Kev Carmody, sang ‘From Little Things Big Things Grow’ and, Ted Egan the Northern Territory Administrator, sang his song “Gurrindji Blues’. A number of Indigenous groups also performed traditional dance and song. Late in the afternoon people headed off for a rest before attending the Freedom Day Concert where Kev Carmody, Baru Kadal Dance, Warren H Williams, Mary G, Lazy Late Boys and Nokturnl performed.
Day two of the festival began with the signing of a new Indigenous Pastoral agreement, an agreement which will support training and jobs for Indigenous people in the pastoral industry. The Gurrindji Tourism project was also launched and a fortunate few headed off with Gurrindji elders to the old camp at Wave-hill
and then to the hand back site at Daguragu. For the rest of the day a diverse program of exhibitions (chidrens art, elders art, old photographs), displays (health, sport, Language, Reconcilitation, etc), sport (Aussie Rules round robin and basketball) and films were available to everyone. Later that evening another concert saw June Mills, Baru Kadal Dance, Yartula Yartula, Lazy Late Boys and Nabarlek rock the town.
Around 2,000 people attended the Festival and the two concerts. People came from all over Australia and from many Aboriginal communities, there were a small number of overseas visitors. With locals comprising just 22% of visitors, around 1,500 people came a long way to attend.
Locally, the festival encouraged local culture, art and performance, and created economic opportunities for the community. The festival also provided opportunities for educating local youth and children about community history and for meaningful participation in the celebration
of this history.
The Festival also promoted Indigenous achievement and role models and built community capacity through education and training in various aspects of Festival organisation and associated projects.
An alcohol and drug free event this major regional event also promoted regional tourism and new local enterprise opportunities to a wide audience and provided extra economic flow to Victoria River Region.
The festival received considerable media attention and was considered by many to be a great success.
